Silent Crime Essay

1201 Words3 Pages

Imagine living life where constantly have to keep looking back because there might be someone following you. Imagine having to always change your phone number and contact information because someone is always calling and then hanging up the phone. Imagine a life where you live in fear of an overly obsessed, who might just end up killing you. Not many people realize this silent crime affects a lot of people in the United States. Stalking is a crime that people joke about and underestimate. This problem can happen to anybody, no matter the race, gender or lifestyle. In fact, homosexual men are more likely to be victims than heterosexual males. And women are more likely to be stalked compared to men (Meloy). Recently, Obama proclaimed January …show more content…

Actually, the attempted assassination of President Reagan was by a man who wanted to impress Jodie Foster ,who he was overly infatuated with (Meloy 85). A popular victim, Sarah Miller, lives in fear of her ex husband. He constantly tries to contact her and also attacked her. At the time, nothing was done to help Miller so she continued to change phone numbers and any other form of communication (Caristone). Some incidents lead to important court cases which help shape laws in the United States. In Peterson v. State, the court defined what three general actions a stalker must do to be charged with a crime. They came to a conclusion that a person must knowingly contact the victim constantly, make the victim sense fear, and acted in a way that they do not care of the overall well being of the victim. In another court case, Snowden v. State, the defendant was put on two year probation. He was not allowed to contact the victim, but when his probation was up, he went back to stalking the victim. Snowden was later arrested because he caused the victim emotional harm …show more content…

Unfortunately, denial is a common characteristic which results in many stalkers not seeking help. There are laws set in place and victim management that reduce violence and stalker contact. Stalking is a crime in United States, New Zealand, Australia and many European countries. However, places like England and Wales do not consider stalking to be a crime (Economist). In the US, police offices can search an individual suspected as a stalker without a search warrant. Cops also perform the "Knock and Talk" strategy which is when policemen gives the stalker a warning to scare them. While the cops tell the individual to stop, they see if the suspected stalker poses any threat. They also should learn about the suspect as much as possible (Maxey). If they seem dangerous, they may have surveillance of the suspect to be prepared for any violent acts. Victims are asked to stop all contact with the suspect, keep a log every time the stalker tries to contact, call the police to reports incidents, obtain restraining order, change phone number, change up routines, tell family, tell friends, trace suspicious calls, and avoid places where the stalker would be

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